From Burned-out to Fired Up: James Ferguson Goes #TeamES

“I grew up wanting to drive big machines and tractors and be around heavy machines. I started in the rental industry in 2003 with a small mom-and-pop company and stayed with them for 14 years. I learned so much from them, and I’m very grateful I had them as teachers. While I was there, I just worked my way up,” James Ferguson said. “I started in the wash bay, then to the office, then I got my Class A license for driving before I became a GM.

James grew up in California and relocated to Texas six years ago. Currently, he serves as general manager for the Dallas branch – one of EquipmentShare’s busiest locations. And how he got there is no accident.

James Ferguson was just about burned out on the equipment rental industry and ready to find something else. After working in the rental business for almost 20 years, he needed something different to reignite his passion for the industry. 

“Things were not going well, so I called an old co-worker, Nick Guthrie (EquipmentShare’s vice president of operations), and that’s how I ended up at EquipmentShare in 2020,” James said. “I was pretty demoralized leaving my former company and didn’t intend to move into a management role, but I know numbers really well, and the previous EquipmentShare manager pushed me to do more because he knew I could.”

What’s it like being the general manager of one of our largest branches, overseeing more than 40 team members? Well, there’s a lot going on.

“I come in each day and check out my numbers, check on my team and see how they are doing, and then we just start solving problems for our customers,” James said. “My operations team is fantastic, so fires are usually put out before I even know about them.”

In his time at EquipmentShare, James has found a much different culture than he’s experienced before.

“Being here with EquipmentShare, my only agenda is to take care of EquipmentShare and our customers. The CEO trusts us to do our jobs as GMs, and that is everything. My numbers are my report card. I was hired to do a job and I’m going to do it — and they let me do it,” James said. “I trusted my friend Nick when he said this was going to be a great place to work, and he was right.” 

As a general manager, James is tasked with building the right team to run the branch and keep it successful. 

“Certain positions require industry knowledge, but as long as someone is dependable and has a great attitude, I can work with that,” James said. “Trust and support are so important, and you have to take ownership of your success and failures, so trust from the top down is huge. If people like coming to work here, that’s a win for me. Culture is everything.”

EquipmentShare is unique because our general managers act as the CEO of their own branch. They have the freedom to run a branch they way they want, with flexible guidelines and a common goal. If this sounds interesting, we are hiring nationwide. Learn how you can find your calling at equipmentshare.com/careers.